Decided to try the muesli this morning and wasn’t impressed. Can’t work out whether it’s the muesli itself or the weird tasting milk, or just me having a cold (although that seems to be drying up nicely – I think Paul’s got it now!). Gave up with it half way through and got some pseudo Coco Pops instead. Then had two rolls instead of one. I’m determined not to be hungry today as early as I was yesterday. Watched the cats from next door playing together and with pine cones (which Paul christened beaver pooh yesterday - don't know why!).
Over breakfast, I suggested that we should maybe do ‘that walk’ later in the week and do something a little easier today, like the tunnels walk and I was surprised when I got no argument from Paul, so we’ll see what happens later in the week.
Drove Biscuit Tin down into the village and parked up to get batteries for Paul’s head torch and my postcards. Then headed back out the way we’d walked back yesterday, the way we’d driven in two nights ago, back to the top of the Falzarego Pass. We parked up a bit prematurely and then moved on to the bottom of the cable car, where we managed to find a space to park and caught the cable car. Cool!!
Up at the top I was stricken with a sudden attack of wobblies because of being so bloody high so quickly. It doesn’t help when my ears won’t pressurise properly and my head swims. Add that to jaw dropping drops and no hand rails and I felt a bit freaked.
We had a wander along towards the top of the troop path (which looked really scary) to a cross at the highest point of the ridge we were on. By that time I was beginning to get used to the height.
We then headed back along the ridge, past the refugio, to the top of the path down to the Lagazuoi Tunnels. The path was actually quite wide and by clutching the cable it was quite possible to trip along nicely. We passed a section where you walk between two walls (which felt very safe) and then through the crater that Waggy was on about last night
... and so to the door at the top of the tunnels.
It was very steep inside, but there were plenty of places to explore off the main route, windows to spectacular views and rooms where there was stuff left behind (and lots of tissues – eeyoou!).
This underground bunkroom was scarily reminiscent of a caving cottage bunkroom!!!
These tunnels, which are all over the place in the Dolomites, were built by the Italian and Austrian soldiers during the first World War. They were constantly discovering enemy tunnels and blowing them up. It’s really hard to imagine what it must have been like for the soldiers living in these tunnels, particularly in the winter. It wasn’t exactly sweating in September.
We did drop quickly, but it seemed to take quite a long time before we were suddenly spat out and tottered along more ledges, before thinking that we’d got some ‘real’ via ferratering to do. We kitted up and then watched as a family came trogging past us with walking poles at the ready and shot up a short climb into another tunnel – we didn’t have to climb over the top after all.
Once through there we came to a natural shelter and de-kitted and then had a bite to eat because by that time – about 1:30pm? – I was starving. We then continued down the last scrambly bits to the ruined building that we’d seen from higher up, where the world and his neighbour seemed to appear from all directions, just as I decided that I simply couldn’t go any farther without a wee.
The zigzag paths far below.
That done, we headed off down the zigzags and back to Biscuit Tin. After changing our boots we went off to find a bar to have a drink so that Paul could go to the loo. We then went and looked at the naff souvenirs in the shop nearby, not forgetting the whistling marmots – aagh!
Then it was back in the car and about a half an hour drive back to Pedraces. We stopped down the bottom and had a brief wander about, but nothing really seemed to be open, so we headed back to Haus Valentin.
Paul picked another couple of via ferratas for tomorrow, which are both easy, so that sounds fun, and more chair lifts to get to the top (woo hoo!).
Went down to happy hour and checked out some stuff like the Vallon VF is now open again and the chair lift to get us up the second part is running. Also the protected path just north of Cortina is the Barbara one, only a couple of hours long and follows the river, so could be good for on the way back to the airport.
The view from our bedroom window.
Dinner was interesting again. Prawn cocktail (no thanks), gorgeous pasta again and a sort of beef stew and pollenta (?), some sort of liquidised corn stuff that looked like sloppy mash. It was OK as long as you mixed it well with the stew, which was good, apart from a lack of veg. Ice cream for pudding was definitely a hit. Didn’t last long after the food. Hit the sack early and lights out at 10:05. Blimey, this high-level walking lark is good for getting you to bed early, but then we do get up fairly early too.
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